UMass Dartmouth women's volleyball team finishes 1999 season with 17-20 overall record

(Dartmouth, MA)- UMass Dartmouth's volleyball team wrestled with consistency all season long as the Corsairs finished with a 17-20 overall record.

Coach Rick Quintin's Corsairs opened their season with an 0-5 record but got back on track by going 4-2 in their next 6 matches. Two more losses were followed by a 3-1 stretch, before inconsistency returned with 4 more losses and a 7-14 mark midway through the season.

Beginning with a five set win over Clark University on Oct. 13, which included a 19-17 fifth set victory for the win, UMass Dartmouth played its best volleyball of the 1999 season over the final three weeks of the season. Over the course of 11 matches, UMass Dartmouth had a 9-2 record, including 5 straight victories at one point and a second-place finish in the Corsairs own UMass Dartmouth Invitational Tournament.

A three-set sweep of Framingham State College on Oct. 26 got the Corsairs back to .500 at 16-16 with a pair of regular season matches and the Little East Conference Tournament remaining. After the long winning streak, however, UMass Dartmouth dropped its last two regular season matches and posted a 1-2 record in the LEC Tournament. The Corsairs closed our their season with a 3-1 loss to Southern Maine in the LEC consolation finals.

Despite falling short of the .500 mark, UMass Dartmouth's 1999 season had several individual and team highlights. Among the season�s bright spots were a second place finish at the UMass Dartmouth Invitational Tournament on Oct. 16. The Corsairs defeated Babson College, University of New England, and Roger Williams University before losing the championship game in a five-set rematch with Babson College.

UMass Dartmouth's sophomore middle hitter Carla Ferreira (Marion, MA) sparked the Corsairs' UMD Invitational Tournament performance and was the team's representative on the All-Tournament Team. Ferreira earned Little East Conference Player of the Week honors the following week for leading the Corsairs to a 5-1 record during the previous week. During that 6-game stretch, Ferreira registered 76 kills, 19 blocks, 65 digs and 19 service aces.

Ferreira continued her outstanding play throughout the season and closed out her year by being named to 1999 LEC All-Tournament Team. Among team leaders in several categories during the 1999 season, Ferreira competed in all 130 games, coming up with 59 service aces and a team-leading 335 kills. Ferriera led the Corsairs in blocks with 93 and was second with 240 digs.

Junior outside hitter Amy Wilson (Dartmouth, MA) was another Corsair who received individual honors during the 1999 season. Following UMass Dartmouth�s effort in the Rhode Island College Invitational on Oct. 2, Wilson was named to the All-Tournament team with 33 kills and 10 aces as the Corsairs defeated Lehman College and Ann Maria College, while dropping matches with Emmanuel and RIC. Wilson competed in all 130 games with 323 kills, second only to Carla Ferriera along with a team-leading 344 digs, 20 blocks and 19 assists.

Sophomore outside hitter Molly Dixon (Rochester, MA) was the Corsairs' leader in services, connecting on 376 of 455 for 63%, while tallying 81 aces. Dixon finished fifth in the LEC in service aces for the season, while also placing third on the team with 244 kills and 198 digs.

First-year setter Hillary Dorgan (Fairhaven, MA) was UMass Dartmouth's assist leader for the year, getting credit for 531 assists, an average of 5.47 assist per match.

The 1999 season marked the final season for head coach Rick Quintin, who announced his resignation at the end of the season. In three years, Quintin returned the UMass Dartmouth program to a competitive level. After taking over for a team which did not win a match in the 1996 season, Quintin's teams posted records of 14-16 in 1997, 16-15 in 1998 and 17-20 in 1999 for a career record of 47-51.